Self Destruct

I'm starting to realize that one thing that separates people who accomplish little from people who accomplish extraordinary amounts is their ability to bounce back from defeat. Often, it's easy to feel like successful people always win. Nothing can be further from the truth. Everyone fails. In fact, it seems like the harder you try new ways to get ahead in life the more opportunities there are to fail in the process. The difference between a successful person and an average person then is that a successful person will not spend time wallowing in their defeat. 

"It seems it's really about how well you can take a hit and bounce back. It's also about how long you are going to take to feel sorry for yourself before you decide to get up, dust yourself off, and move forward." -Barbara Corcoran

I've found that most people think that they bounce back from failure quickly but in reality most don't. Sometimes we like to stay angry because it's easier and it feels good. Other times we allow our sarcastic inner voice narrate our behavior for weeks until we are ready to let go of the fact we missed the mark.

I recently realized this truth in my own life. I had set a personal goal to achieve in two months and about a month and a half into it I failed miserably one day. My first instinct was to say internally, "I suck. I failed again. I might as well binge and continue failing until I can muster up enough willpower to start over again later". Luckily before I could carry out that destructive thought process it hit me that that is why some people continue to lose in life. Not because they failed once but because they internally say, "Oh well" and wallow in their defeat until their conscience feels they have payed the debt for their mistake. This is how people keep themselves from growing, getting better, and experiencing breakthroughs in their lives and in the changing of their character. It's self-defeating behavior that most never realize they are even doing (Including me). 

The sad part is that many people who aspire to live healthy, live pure, and live successfully will never live that way because they are so busy self-destructing that they miss opportunities day after day to reach new heights. They suppress themselves. Lord, help us not to be our own worst enemies! Help us to be what You want us to be!